I've always had blood sugar issues (in high school I passed out in class and was diagnosed with Hypoglycemia) but after being diagnosed with PCOS 3 years ago, I found out I actually had Insulin Resistance/Pre-Diabetes. I've always controlled my symptoms with diet, and most of my jobs made that easy - but now I work in a restaurant, where it's against the rules and health code to snack during work...
And I am finding myself being forced to go several hours at a time without a break. I generally get to work at 10am after having a small breakfast... And should get a break around 1:30-2:30, which is the middle of my shift...
But often I find myself still trying to get a break at 3:30-4:30 because my employer insists I have to have someone cover my area... But there are MANY other employees that work in another area and could easily fill in for my 30 minute break.
They know I have blood sugar issues but continue to refuse my requests. I'm the only one in our area getting refused breaks - the other workers frequently work alone and get their breaks easily and they also get help sometimes (I almost never do until about two hours before my shift ends). Often I'm ordered to give other employees their breaks the second I arrive, but other employees are frequently 30 minutes-2 hours late to work when I'm waiting for them to get there so I can eat.
I don't know what to do short of quitting, just taking my break without permission, or eating on the job and hoping I don't get caught... Anyone have any advice? :(
You have a right to reasonable accommodations. The ADA has a good discussion of your basic rights. But having the right and getting the right are two different things. You need to learn exactly what your rights are, your boss may not understand. And if your employer is a small business, there may not be a lot of depth of knowledge about the law. In most large corporations, the HR department will help and will already by on top of this and have an official EEOC contact. You can also share the information from the ADA, the Job Accommodations Network and the EEOC with your employer. And always be negotiable, if you can come up with an easy solution that keeps everyone happy, the problem will be easily resolved.
Sorry to hear of your predicament. Regarding labor laws for you're state of Oklahoma. I found the following from the Oklahoma Department of Labor. http://www.ok.gov/triton/search.php?cref=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ok.gov%2F...*&sitesearch=http://www.ok.gov/odol/&q=lunch%20break&as_epq=&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_occt=any&sort=&num=10&cof=FORID%3A9%3BNB%3A1#947
2. Are breaks and lunch periods mandatory? Neither federal nor state law require employers to provide breaks to employees age 16 or older. Mandatory break laws only apply to children under the age of 16. Breaks and lunch periods are considered benefits and remain at the discretion of the employer.
Talk about taxation without representation. From your description it seems as though your employer has set a president of allowing unscheduled lunch breaks. Maybe you ot to have another polite conversation about this. Diabetic or not you along with the dinning public would like a simple lunch..
I see that diabetes is common with PCOS. From what I can gather under the Americans With Disabilities Act both PCOS and Pre-Diabetes alone is seldom considered a disability. Morbid obesity and pre-diabites is though(?) So you may have two feet to stand on. 1. Pre-Diabetes 2.PCOS
